From a young age, ZeZe was diagnosed with autism, psychosis and a personality disorder, and has lived experience as a care leaver. She started her organisation Emotional Dysregulation in Autism (EDA) to help other individuals like her that struggle with mental health, giving them a space to communicate and express emotions safely. Her charity offers social action, campaigning opportunities and peer support to other individuals that may be going through the same experience.
ZeZe first came across Ideas Made Real and the Gen22 programme in 2022, where she bid for her own social action project #EDARise, which was a community event for young people with autism, and included keynote speakers, workshops and emotion management sessions. The Gen22 team built mentor relationships with ZeZe and continued to support her, following the successful delivery of her project.
ZeZe has since gone on to win awards such as the British Citizen Award and the Diana Award, alongside other successful bids from Innovate UK and NHS England to continue the impactful work she started.
